Chennai Smashers edged Awadhe Warriors 4-3 on Wednesday evening in Bangalore, but the team from Lucknow stayed on top as PBL 2017 enters the closing stages.

Match 1: Vincent Wong Ki (AWD) vs Tanongsak S. (CHE)

The tie got under way with the men’s singles as Tanongsak S. of Chennai squared up against Vincent Wong Ki of Awadhe. Tanongsak started off on the front foot and played some powerful shots and showed good net play to take a healthy 6-3 lead into the break in the first game. He then breezed away with the game after the half and comfortably took the first game 11-6. Vincent put up a better performance going into the second game, cautiously avoiding errors as he edged into a 6-5 lead at the half. He kept his nerves after the break and showed good intensity to take the second set 11-9 to stretch the game into a decider.

Tanongsak came out the more aggressive of the two in the third game and played measured shots to notch up crucial points and take a 6-5 lead into the break. However, Vincent made a strong comeback into the game with some good court coverage and net play, and although Tanongsak saved two match points, Vincent proved to be the better player on the evening as he took the deciding game 12-10 and hand Awadhe the first point of the tie.

Result: Vincent Wong Ki (AWD) beat Tanongsak S. (CHE) 6-11, 11-9, 12-10

Match 2: Gabrielle Adcock/Chris Adcock (CHE) vs Prajakta Sawant/Bodin Issara (AWD)

The second match of the evening was the mixed doubles match with Chennai’s Adcocks taking on Awadhe’s first-time pairing of Prajakta Sawant and Bodin Issara. The English pair started slowly, falling behind 0-3 only to win six straight points going into the break. There was no stopping the Smashers’ pair after that as they took the first game 11-4 with relative ease.

Sawant and Issara put up better resistance in the second game as they were behind by only a point at the break at 5-6. Unfortunately for them, it wasn’t enough as the well-established pair of Chris and Gabrielle Adcock edged the second game 11-9 to level the tie at one apiece for Chennai.

Result: Gabrielle Adcock/Chris Adcock (CHE) beat Prajakta Sawant/Bodin Isara (AWD) 11-4, 11-9

Match 3: Aditya Joshi (AWD) vs P. Kashyap (CHE)

Match three of the evening witnessed the second men’s doubles as the experienced P. Kashyap of the Smashers took on PBL debutant Aditya Joshi of the Warriors as Chennai called for the tie’s first Trump.

Joshi made Kashyap run all over the court and matched him stride for stride in the first game as the Smashers’ man only managed to take a 6-5 lead into the break. However, Joshi showed lack of experience after the half as he made too many errors, letting Kashyap run away with the game, clinching it at 11-7. Joshi however, responded strongly as he started the second game with a bang, forcing Kashyap into errors as he galloped to a 6-1 lead at the half. He continued with his fine momentum after the break and was relentless with his smashes and accurate drop shots, as he took the second game by a comfortable 11-5 margin. Joshi started the deciding game as the more aggressive and showed good intensity on the court to manage a 6-5 lead at the break.  However, Kashyap put all his experience into play and played some intelligent shots to overturn the deficit and deny Joshi an upset. He took the deciding game 11-7 and handed two crucial points to the Smashers.

Result: P. Kashyap (CHE) beat Aditya Joshi (AWD) 11-7, 5-11, 11-7

Match 4: Rituparna Das (AWD) vs PV Sindhu (CHE)

With the Smashers leading 3-1, one more win here could hand them the tie and render the Warriors’ Trump match inconsequential. PV Sindhu went into the match with the unheralded Rituparna Das as firm favourite and began the game by strolling to a 6-2 lead at the break. Das tried to fight back but an unperturbed Sindhu ran through the first game 11-4.

The second game saw a familiar story as Sindhu led by the same score as in the first. The 2016 Olympic silver medalist was in total control throughout and her smash proved to be too much to handle for Das. Sindhu wrapped up the second game 11-6 to give an impregnable 4-1 lead to the Chennai Smashers.

Result: PV Sindhu (CHE) beat Rituparna Das (AWD) 11-4, 11-6

Match 5: Goh W Shem/Markis Kido (AWD) vs B Sumeeth Reddy/Mads Pieler Kolding (CHE)

The tie culminated with the men’s double as the Smashers’ pair of B Sumeeth Reddy and Mads Kolding took on the team of Goh W Shem and Markis Kido of the Warriors.

Reddy and Kolding started off well as they showed good composure on the court to take a 6-5 lead at the break. However, Shem and Kido then kept cool and held off pressure from Reddy and Kolding to take the first game 12-10. Reddy and Kolding started the second game well and forced Shem and Kido into some errors as the Chennai pair again took a 6-5 lead into the half. However, Shem and Kido were once again up to the task as they once more overturned the deficit playing some smart shots and wrapping up the match by winning the game 11-8. The tie was lost though for the Warriors, as they went down 3-4 to the Smashers.

Result: Shem/Kido (AWD) beat Reddy/Kolding (CHE) 12-10, 11-8

Match Result: Chennai Smashers beat Awadhe Warriors 4-3